Higher Education  

Public four-year institutions in Nevada are the University of Nevada, with campuses in Las Vegas and Reno; and Nevada State College, in Henderson. The Desert Research Institute is a public graduate program that awards degrees through the University of Nevada. The state's community colleges are Community College of Southern Nevada, Great Basin College, Truckee Meadows Community College, and Western Nevada College. Private institutions include Sierra Nevada College, in Incline Village; and Art Institute of Las Vegas, University of Southern Nevada, and Touru University Nevada, all in Henderson.

Geography

Covering 286,299 square kilometers, Nevada is the seventh largest state in the USA. The state can be divided into three main regions: the Basin and Range region, the Sierra Nevada region, and the Columbia Plateau. The Basin and Range region includes the Great Basin, which is a desert area, and more than thirty mountain ranges that run from north to south through the desert; this region covers most of the state. Reaching into a small southwestern corner of Nevada, the Sierra Nevada is the highest mountain range in the lower forty-eight states. The Columbia Plateau is a small pocket of land at the Nevada-Idaho border through which rivers and streams have cut deep canyons. Major rivers are the Humboldt, the Truckee, and the Colorado. The state's largest lakes are Lake Mead, Pyramid Lake, and Lake Tahoe. Nevada's major cities include Las Vegas, Henderson, Paradise, Reno, and Carson City (capital). More than 2.6 million people live in Nevada.

Climate

Nevada is the driest state in the USA; nearly half the state has a desert climate. This is because the Sierra Madre mountain range in the west blocks many rain clouds from the Pacific Ocean. Annually, Nevada receives an average of about 23 cm of precipitation. Las Vegas, at the southern end of the state, has an average temperature of 6° C in January and 32° C in July. Reno, in the western mountains, has an average January temperature of -1° C and an average July temperature of 20° C.

Cultural Profile

At the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, there is an annual series of symphonies, operas, and ballets. Theatrical performances are staged occasionally at the Northeastern Nevada Museum in Elko. The National Basque Festival and the Cowboy Poetry Gathering are both held each year in Elko.

The state's museums include the Nevada State Museum and the Nevada State Railroad Museum, and the Stewart Indiana Museum, all in Carson City; the Mackay School of Mines Museum, the Nevada Historical Society Museum, and the Sierra Nevada Museum of Art, all in Reno; the Las Vegas Museum of Natural History and the Mormon Fort Museum, both in Las Vegas.

Recreation

Nevada is famous for its many casinos and nightclubs, especially those in Las Vegas and Reno. The state also offers many outdoor activities, such as camping, hiking, hunting, fishing, climbing, hang gliding, skiing and land sailing. Humboldt National Forest and Toiyabe National Forest are the state's two national forests. In addition, Nevada maintains many state parks and state historical parks. Some other interesting places to visit are Death Valley National Monument, near Beatty; Hoover Dam, near Boulder City; Lake Tahoe, near Reno; and the State Capitol, in Carson City.

Interesting Facts

Nevada is America's leading state for mining silver and gold. The state has the country's highest marriage rate, and also the highest divorce rate. Famous Nevadans include Andre Agassi (tennis player), Jack Kramer (tennis player), Paul Laxalt (governor of Nevada and US senator), Edna Purviance (early film actress), Emma Wixom (opera star, also known as Emma Nevada), and Wovoka (Paiute Indian prophet).